Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. Deals

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Best Xbox Live Gold deals for January 2023

Kelly Kaliszewski
By

While a subscription to Xbox Live is technically optional, gaming without it is missing so many core elements of the experience: multiplayer, free games, and more. So if you’re a proud owner of the Xbox 360, Xbox One, or the new Xbox Series X, you should definitely sign up for an Xbox Live Gold membership. Since it can be expensive, and to help you enjoy savings and keep your video game budget intact, we’ve scoured the web and rounded up all the best Xbox Live Gold sales in one place, including Xbox Live Gold 1-Month, Xbox Live Gold 3-Month, and Xbox Live Gold 6-Month subscriptions. You should also check out the 12-month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which offers more benefits beyond Xbox Live Gold membership.

Best Xbox Live Gold deals

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 1-month membership — $13, was $15

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate logo and a collage of featured games
Microsoft

Play brand new titles like Starfield on day one, when they launch, or access iconic titles from Xbox Game Studios, Bethesda Softworks, and much more. You can also play online, access online Xbox Live features, and get exclusive member discounts. This digital code offers 1-month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 3-month membership — $38, was $45

Games on Xbox Game Pass.
Xbox

With this digital bundle you’ll get 3-months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to play and access the available library, whenever and however you want.

Related

What is Xbox Live Gold?

Xbox Live Gold is a subscription membership that is required if you want to play games online with Xbox One, Xbox 360, or Xbox Series X. Regularly, a subscription for Xbox Live Gold costs $10 per month or $60 per year. Xbox Live Gold also gives members access to additional benefits such as free games every month and discounts on selected digital games.

Whether you’re playing solo, with a single friend, or as a part of an online cooperative with a bunch of strangers, you need Xbox Live Gold to do it. Your subscription also gives you access to the party system and voice chat so you can communicate with your cohorts while you play.

Every month, Microsoft offers free games to Xbox Live Gold members through its Games with Gold program. These games are only available for a limited time (two weeks or one month) and can be redeemed via the website on your Xbox console. You can then download and keep the game for free. The good news about this feature is that if you let your subscription lapse, you get the game back when you renew your subscription, though you cannot play the game while the subscription is inactive. 

If you have an Xbox 360 and have games that you redeemed via Games with Gold, you don’t have to worry about losing those games if you decide to upgrade to an Xbox One. Microsoft has guaranteed that all Xbox 360 games that have been released through Games with Gold will be playable on the Xbox One via backward compatibility.

Your Xbox Live Gold membership also includes Deals with Gold, which gives subscribers exclusive deals on digital Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Xbox Series X games. The deals change every week, and you can view the current deals on the Deals with Gold website. If you purchase a game through Deals with Gold, it is yours to keep, even if your subscription lapses or expires.

It should be noted that Xbox Live Gold is different than Xbox Live Silver (now called Xbox Live Free). The free version has limited features that allow you to create a friends list, create a profile and Gamertag, preview games, stream video content from the Zune network, download games and add-ons from the Xbox Live Marketplace, send and receive messages with other Xbox Live users as text or voice, and make video calls to friends using Video Kinect (if you own a Kinect). The glaring difference between the two services other than the price is that you cannot play online with Xbox Live Free.

More Unmissable Deals

Topics
Kelly Kaliszewski
Kelly Kaliszewski
Content Writer
Kelly's work has appeared in blogs and on websites. She enjoys writing about all things kitchen and food. When she's not…
Best gaming laptop deals: Alienware, Razer, Asus and more
An Alienware m16 gaming laptop in use on a desk, playing Baldur's Gate III.

A few years ago, buying a gaming laptop meant you had to spend thousands of dollars for a big and bulky thing that could barely play most video games for more than an hour. Luckily, that has changed drastically in the past two to three years, and you can now get some really excellent laptops, even at budget prices. That said, gaming laptops do remain expensive compared to non-gaming laptops, especially if you want to play some of the best PC games, which is why we've gone out and found our favorite gaming laptop deals for you. We've picked several choices at different prices and performance brackets, so you can pick something that fits your needs best, and if you're not totally convinced and might want something else, you can check out these laptop deals.
IdeaPad Gaming 3 gaming laptop -- $650, was $950

The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 is an excellent budget option, and while it won't be able to play the latest games at max settings, it's still pretty good. Under the hood it has an RTX 3050, which is an entry-level GPU that will handle most free-to-play games relatively ok with lower graphical settings. It also comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS processor, which is a mid-range option and will handle most games just fine, plus will let you get some productivity work done as well. As for the screen, it's 15.6 inches big and runs at FHD at 120Hz refresh, which won't massively stress the RTX 3050, which is good.

Read more
Best Alienware deals: Gaming PCs, laptops, and monitors
Alienware Aurora R15 placed at an angle on a table.

From gaming laptops to gaming monitors and from gaming headsets to gaming keyboards, Alienware has you covered when it comes to all things gaming equipment. It’s a brand many gamers seek out when looking for new gear, and that’s in part because there are often some good Alienware deals to track down. Alienware regularly turns out some of the best gaming laptop deals and the best gaming PC deals, in fact, and that’s certainly the case right now. We’ve tracked down the very best Alienware deals and put them all in one place below. Reading onward you’ll find deals on laptops, monitors, PCs, and headsets, as well as some information on what Alienware equipment may best suit your gaming setup.
Alienware AW920H wireless gaming headset — $110, was $200

A gaming headset is a great way to keep in touch with your friends while you play. The Alienware AW920H gaming headset lets you do so without the burden or wires, as it connects to your gaming setup via Bluetooth. It has a built-in microphone for outgoing communications, as well as Dolby Atmos, Surround Sound, and Stereo Sound options to help immerse you in the game and incoming communications.

Read more
Best PS5 game deals: discounts on the best games of 2023
Ellie pets a giraffe in The Last of Us Part I.

If you recently picked up a PlayStation 5 and are looking for games, you'll be happy to know that there are a lot of great deals out there, ranging from the very budget-friendly to only slightly cheaper than the list price. It can be a little bit overwhelming to find something good, especially if you're not in any particular mood for a game and just want to grab something fun and enjoyable. To that end, we've rounded up a list of our favorite PS5 game deals and discounts so that you don't have to. In fact, quite a few of the games appear on our list of best PS5 Games, so you're getting quite a lot of bang for your buck.
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales -- $20, was $50

If you're a fan of Spider-Man, then you should absolutely grab yourself a copy of Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales if you haven't played it already. Not only is it one of the best Spider-Man games out there, but it's an absolute blast to play with a much more engrossing story with a deep narrative. The gameplay is also a lot more fun, with the spider-web swinging mechanic being very fluid and one of the best in any Spider-Man game, so it's well worth grabbing if you've always wanted to live the Spider-Man fantasy.

Read more